Truth is the beginning of wisdom…

Quotes To Ponder

A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse [money, bounty, assistance, gifts] from the public treasury.
- Alexis de Tocqueville

From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most benefits from the public treasury with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by a dictatorship. The average age of the world's greatest civilizations has been 200 years.
- Alexander Frazer Tytler

Archive for September, 2009

An excerpt from a column on 9/8/2009 Marcia titled: Here’s what I REALLY think (an open letter to liberals) …

Dear liberal neighbors, acquaintances, friends and family,

I’m a conservative. A political and social conservative. I know that some of you assume that means I’m mean-spirited, selfish, intolerant, greedy, and perhaps even evil. But before you write me off, allow me to explain what I really think. You might be surprised to find that, at least in some areas, we want the same things. We just disagree on how to get them.

I believe in limited government. While I think government has many important roles to play (most importantly providing a military to protect our country), in general I believe the less government the better. For one thing, bureaucracy too often breeds inefficiency, mediocrity, or even worse by not rewarding performance. Anyone who’s been to his local Department of Motor Vehicles, or his post office for that matter, can attest to that. But even if government bureaucracies worked perfectly, why would I (or anyone, for that matter) want to be subject to any more laws and regulations than I already am? I believe I’m better at running my life than my congressman is.

As a believer in small government, it follows that I want my taxes to be as low as possible. I prefer to spend my own money as I choose, not because I’m greedy, but because I’ll spend it more wisely and carefully because I earned it. Government waste is a given. And while I do believe the government should help the neediest among us, welfare states simply do not work. Bill Clinton knew that well enough to act on it. I believe individuals should be encouraged to be as charitable and generous as possible. (As a Christian, I believe it’s my responsibility to help take care of people in need.) But I also believe individuals fare better when they take responsibility for their own lives. Dignity comes from taking responsibility, not handouts – and dignity breeds motivation. George Will summed it up nicely when he wrote that “excessively benevolent government is not a benefactor.” I believe in equal opportunity, but I don’t believe that equal outcomes can (or should) be mandated.

I believe in personal freedom. The less government bureaucrats have to say about my personal life, the better. Naturally we’re all subject to the laws of the land, but it’s another thing entirely to have my family’s healthcare run by committee, for example. Having lived through a few years without employer-provided health insurance, I know how tough that is. I’d still prefer that to the British system in which my brother had to wait three months for an MRI to determine what a doctor here diagnosed by my description alone: that he’d suffered a stroke at the age of 38. Guaranteed healthcare doesn’t mean much when it’s dangerously slow and just plain lousy.

Most public school systems are sad but perfect examples of how tax-supported bureaucracies simply don’t work. As a conservative, I believe in school choice. Not only would individual students benefit, it would inspire healthy competition and remind administrators that they are answerable to parents.

I am also a social conservative. I believe in traditional Judeo-Christian values, and want the freedom to continue to worship as a Christian. I also want the right to raise my children with those values. I don’t want my children taught that the practice of homosexuality is right any more than my liberal neighbors want their children taught that it’s wrong. Liberals who wouldn’t want their children taught Christian precepts in school should be able to understand why conservative Christians don’t want their children taught un-Christian precepts. In fact, if public schools focused on academics and left social and moral issues to parents, we’d all be better off. Social change dreamed up and forced on society, including children, by a few Washington insiders is a truly frightening prospect. Too much power in the hands of a small group of any persuasion is a dangerous thing.

In a nutshell, I’m for limited government that acts to preserve opportunity and encourage personal responsibility. I’m for small government that allows me the freedom to believe what I choose to believe, and raise my children accordingly. I believe it’s my duty to help people in need, and that while government has a role to play in that regard, it is among the least capable of institutions to do so with positive long-term outcomes.

Ronald Reagan captured the conservative ethos in another quote from that famous 1964 speech: “[Y]ou and I have the ability and the dignity and the right to make our own decisions and determine our own destiny.”

Listening To A Liar
Thomas Sowell – Syndicated Columnist – 9/8/2009

The most important thing about what anyone says are not the words themselves but the credibility of the person who says them.

The words of convicted swindler Bernie Madoff were apparently quite convincing to many people who were regarded as knowledgeable and sophisticated. If you go by words, you can be led into anything.

No doubt millions of people will be listening to the words of President Barack Obama Wednesday night when he makes a televised address to a joint session of Congress on his medical care plans. But, if they think that the words he says are what matters, they can be led into something much worse than being swindled out of their money.

One plain fact should outweigh all the words of Barack Obama and all the impressive trappings of the setting in which he says them: He tried to rush Congress into passing a massive government takeover of the nation’s medical care before the August recess – for a program that would not take effect until 2013!

Whatever President Obama is, he is not stupid. If the urgency to pass the medical care legislation was to deal with a problem immediately, then why postpone the date when the legislation goes into effect for years – more specifically, until the year after the next presidential election?

If this is such an urgently needed program, why wait for years to put it into effect? And if the public is going to benefit from this, why not let them experience those benefits before the next presidential election?

If it is not urgent that the legislation goes into effect immediately, then why don’t we have time to go through the normal process of holding congressional hearings on the pros and cons, accompanied by public discussions of its innumerable provisions? What sense does it make to “hurry up and wait” on something that is literally a matter of life and death?

If we do not believe that the president is stupid, then what do we believe? The only reasonable alternative seems to be that he wanted to get this massive government takeover of medical care passed into law before the public understood what was in it. Moreover, he wanted to get re-elected in 2012 before the public experienced what its actual consequences would be.

Unfortunately, this way of doing things is all too typical of the way this administration has acted on a wide range of issues.

Consider the “stimulus” legislation. Here the administration was successful in rushing a massive spending bill through Congress in just two days – after which it sat on the president’s desk for three days, while he was away on vacation. But, like the medical care legislation, the “stimulus” legislation takes effect slowly.

The Congressional Budget Office estimates that it will be September 2010 before even three-quarters of the money will be spent. Some economists expect that it will not all be spent by the end of 2010.

What was the rush to pass it, then? It was not to get that money out into the economy as fast as possible. It was to get that money – and the power that goes with it – into the hands of the government. Power is what politics is all about.

The worst thing that could happen, from the standpoint of those seeking more government power over the economy, would be for the economy to begin recovering on its own while months were being spent debating the need for a “stimulus” bill. As the president’s chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, said, you can’t let a crisis “go to waste” when “it’s an opportunity to do things you could not do before.”

There are lots of people in the Obama administration who want to do things that have not been done before – and to do them before the public realizes what is happening.

The proliferation of White House “czars” in charge of everything from financial issues to media issues is more of the same circumvention of the public and of the Constitution. Czars don’t have to be confirmed by the Senate, the way Cabinet members must be, even though czars may wield more power, so you may never know what these people are like, until it is too late.

What Barak Obama says Wednesday night is not nearly as important as what he has been doing – and how he has been doing it.

Also in a recent Washington Examiner, Kevin Mooney discusses new analysis of the “Obamacare” health care overhaul legislation from National Right to Work experts who have unearthed several disturbing provisions in the proposed bills that secretly intended to grant sweeping new forced unionism powers to union bosses.

Coupled with bailouts of $10 billion dollars and exclusive union access to lucrative federal grants, the union brass will now be placed in a policymaking and implementation role with respect to a statute intended to facilitate the forced unionization of nearly every health care employee.

History shows the future of union bosses who will abuse their newfound power to shut down medical facilities with sick-outs and strikes; force doctors, nurses, and in-home care providers to abandon their patients, so as to dictate terms and conditions of employment; and impose a failed, Detroit-style management model on the entire health care field.

The U.S. Postal Service was established in 1775 – you have had 234 years to get it right; it is still broke losing more every year.

Social Security was established in 1935 – you have had 74 years to get it right; it is still broke with many people on it who never paid into it.

Fannie Mae was established in 1938 – you have had 71 years to get it right; it is still broke.

The “War on Poverty” started in 1964 – you have had 45 years to get it right; $1 trillion of our money is confiscated each year and transferred to “the poor”; it hasn’t worked and our entire country is broke.

Medicare and Medicaid were established in 1965 – you’ve had 44 years to get it right; they are still broke.

Freddie Mac was established in 1970 – you have had 39 years to get it right; it is broke.

Trillions of dollars were spent in the massive political payoffs called TARP, the “Stimulus”, the Omnibus Appropriations Act of 2009… none show any signs of working, although ACORN appears to have found a new source of income: the American taxpayer.

And finally, to set a new record:

“Cash for Clunkers” was established in 2009! It took good dependable cars (that were the best some people could afford) and replaced them with high-priced and less-affordable cars, mostly Japanese. A good percentage of the profits went out of the country. And the American taxpayers take the hit for Congress’ generosity in burning three billion more of our dollars on failed experiments.

So with a perfect 100% failure rate and a record that proves that “services” government provides fail, you want Americans to believe you can be trusted with a government-run health care system … 20% of our entire economy?

F o r m e r C o m m u n i s t

Barack Obama and the socialist leadership in Congress are working furiously to change America! They want to transform our nation and they’re spending trillions of tax dollars to do it.

I am not talking about the type of misery Jimmy Carter inflicted on our nation. Conservatives were able to reverse the course Carter had put us on. But what we’re seeing today isn’t like anything you and I have ever seen! I’m talking about a whole scale, radical transformation of our nation. From our national defense to our foreign policy to our free market economic system. Obama and company have implemented and have plans to further implement massive government control over each of us.

Americans – your friends and neighbors – do not fully realize the radical changes Barack Obama and the socialists in Congress are foisting upon our way of life!

But you do. And I do as well. Today the Obamaites, George Soros, Hillary Clinton, Nancy Pelosi, Rahm Emanuel, Harry Reid – the small but powerful group of left-wing radicals who are at the controls of this transformation are all disciples of the 1960s radical Saul Alinsky. Alinsky’s book, Rules for Radicals, was the Little Red Book for the college radicals of the 1960s. I know, I was one of them.

I understand better than most Alinsky’s deep, deep hatred of America. A hate that ran so deep he wrote a blueprint for tearing our nation down. And while I outgrew and repented my anti-Americanism and came to see how great and generous our country is, many agents of the radical left never grew up. In fact, today many of them are leaders in Congress and in our White House, all embracing Alinsky’s Rules for Radicals – the road map for turning our nation upside down.

With every passing day we see what lays behind the Administration’s piecemeal efforts to take over the car makers, the banks and the health care system: creating a new America that will bear little resemblance to the country in which we grew up. You and I must counter this. The Freedom Center willingly takes on the Paul Revere role. We have a massive media blitz planned detailing precisely the radical transformation we’re undergoing.

I am writing a new booklet that I must blanket on college campuses as the new school year starts. This booklet – “Alinsky’s Rules for Obama’s Radicalism” – paints a clear picture of Barack Obama’s agenda for our nation. And we have prepared an advertisement to run in papers around the country calling on Americans to derail this train before it’s too late.

P.S. The idea that the disciples of Saul Alinsky – a man who so hated America he detailed a plan to tear it apart – are running our nation is hard to swallow. But the facts bear it out. Stand with me and the Freedom Center as we ride like Paul Revere across the nation and sound the alarm!

President Ronald Reagan passed away in 2004, but he said something that still resonates today. Reagan said:“One of the traditional methods of imposing statism or socialism on a people has been by way of medicine. It’s very easy to disguise a medical program as a humanitarian project. Most people are a little reluctant to oppose anything that suggests medical care for people who possibly can’t afford it.”

Boy does that resonate! It sounds like President Reagan had the foresight to see the dangers of Obamacare.

Even more amazing is thatRonald Reagan spoke those words in 1961, before he ever ran for office. But Reagan’s comments are not surprising if you understand liberalism.

Creating a national health care system has been a major priority for the left wing for over 50 years! Time and again the Congress and the American people have rejected socialized medicine. Now Obama is pushing for a radical takeover of one-sixth of the U.S. economy. But Obama is perhaps the most clever liberal ever. He knows the American people would never go for a national system like they have in Britain or Canada. So his plan calls for several steps prior to the Obamacare push to become a reality.

First, Obama lies and tells people “you keep your doctor, you keep your insurer.” At the same time he creates a “public option” – allowing any business to move its employees into the public system. He knows this will create a mass exodus from private insurers to the cheaper, taxpayer heavily subsidized public system. Meanwhile, he plans to add 40-50 million new patients – including illegal aliens – to the system.

Reagan understood that schemes like Obama’s are not about providing quality health care. It is about statism. It is about government control and dependence. It is a threat to your freedom.

There is a major assault being planned at this coming called full session of Congress. Obama is not calling this session to offer compromise. He plans on using his national address to Congress as a giant pep rally to ram his radical program through Congress. He wants the hoopla of a Congressional speech to overshadow his plummeting poll numbers, the mass protests we saw this summer at town halls across the nation and the growing anger toward his plan by Seniors. Nancy Pelosi stated unequivocally Congress will pass the Obamacare plan with the “public option” or whatever name it may be changed to by then but still the same animal. Any report of a compromise is just a stall maneuver by the Democrat’s far left agenda.

The American Voters can’t go on vacation. We can’t compromise with Obama and the radical Democrats. We need to fight back. Strike a blow for freedom, to stand with the principles of Ronald Reagan. We must hit the ground running after Labor Day.

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately, especially after all these non-elected czars being appointed.Then after watching this deal with Van Jones go down the concluding question is WHO in government actually cares about America, the people and the Constitution?

While the Van Jones controversy has been transpiring, where was the outrage from Congress, irrelevant of the party stripe, about a self avowed communist having the President’s ear. In addition to the communism thing, all of his other idiotic statements were out there, some for a long time, and still, nothing from Congress! Only after public outrage got vehement and was blasted all over Fox News (who themselves were way behind the curve on this), did some republican Congressmen voice their opposition to Jones being in any position of authority.

There should have been intense outrage at the lack of opposition from Congress.This makes me believe there are no patriots in Congress who took their roles and responsibilities, that We the People have charged them with – as in, upholding and defending the Constitution fromall enemies foreign and domestic! Seriously, where were the brave men and women in the Congress who would rise up and put their collective foot down on this administration’s active erosion of civil rights and Constitutionality!? There was NOTHING on their sites about it. Nothing on the news (even Fox) from them about it. They were sitting back and being as quiet as the mainstream news, meanwhile Facebook, Blogs, Twitter and others were lit up and going insane crying out begging for someone, ANYONE to listen …

So as the democrats are actively looking to take this country into the realm of socialism/communism, the republicans are content to sit back and watch silently as the democrats drive the bus off the cliff!ARE THE AMERICAN PEOPLE WILLING TO LET THIS HAPPEN?

This should be an emphatic NO!!!!

Democrats, get out the hard left, this Marxist left you are in and surrounded by!Republicans, clean up your party and get your voice and feet to action, your silence is inept!

The “remaking” of America continues at breakneck speed. The man who occupies the Oval Office has made an appeal to the American people that the time for discussion is over and that socialized medicine in the form of so-called healthcare reform must be passed now. He said, “This is a problem we can no longer wait to fix. Deferring reform is nothing more than defending the status quo – and those who would oppose our efforts should take a hard look at just what it is they’re defending.” Of course, there have been several news stories that the 1,018 page healthcare legislation has not even been read by the Congressmen who will vote on it.

If people would read the healthcare bills before Congress they would be astonished. The legislation mandates the use of taxpayer money to fund abortions. The legislation calls for a government tribunal of political appointees – not even elected officials – to determine who receives healthcare and under what conditions. This healthcare reform is tantamount to euthanasia for senior citizens. Obama told ABC News on June 24th that older people who didn’t have much longer to live were maybe “better off not having the surgery, but taking the painkiller.” Meaning that if you are no longer productive to society – translated, paying taxes – the government will decide you cannot receive life-prolonging treatment.

However that’s not all the government will control with this brand of healthcare reform. Page 16 of the healthcare bill specifically outlaws individual private coverage. In other words, you will not be able to buy insurance apart from a government-approved plan. Indeed, if you do not want to participate in socialized medicine, you have no choice … no matter what Obama and others say with their mouths! The IRS will have authority to fine you thousands of dollars a year if you cannot prove you are insured by a government approved plan. Small businesses will be required to provide the government health insurance at a tremendous cost, resulting in price increases on goods or closing the doors at unprecedented job losses.

Killing the pre-born; euthanizing the elderly; government appointed tribunals determining healthcare (referred to as the death panels); forcing government healthcare upon reluctant citizens; destroying jobs and causing inflation – these are just a few of the results of HR 3200 – America’s Affordable Health Choice Act of 2009. Ironically the American people, and those in health care professions, will have no choice … the American people in their health choices, and the health care providers in their moral and ethical choices.

Jesus said in Matthew 5:13, “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.”This healthcare bill is immoral and Christians have a directive to stand for righteousness and morality. Let us speak boldly to all who will lend an ear, and after having done that … stand!